Nine Heavens Martial Emperor

Taking the Blood-Burning Bursting Pill would indeed allow him to kill Lin Hao, but Hu Rui would be crippled in the process.

If he didn’t get a promise now, Hu Rui knew what awaited him.

But just then, Hu Rui felt a sudden chill, and the pill in his hand was gone.

Before he could react, a large, vise-like hand clamped around his neck.

"You talk too much." Those were the last words Hu Rui ever heard.

CRACK!

Lin Hao easily crushed Hu Rui’s throat, then nonchalantly began toying with the pill in his hand.

"Hahaha, Lin Hao, you’re dead for sure now!" Amidst the void, Duan Xinyu’s form solidified. He stared at Lin Hao, laughing maniacally.

"Oh?" Lin Hao raised a brow and asked, confused.

"I anticipated you would snatch the pill from Hu Rui’s hand. How could I not make some preparations beforehand?" Duan Xinyu looked at Lin Hao as if he were a dead man.

"You mean this isn’t just a Blood-Burning Bursting Pill?" Lin Hao’s expression remained nonchalant.

"You’re certainly clever, but it’s too late. That pill is coated with a lethal poison. Merely touching it means certain death. Don’t believe me? Look." As he spoke, Duan Xinyu pointed at Hu Rui’s body in front of Lin Hao.

Just then, Hu Rui’s body began to blacken and rapidly decompose, turning into a puddle of black liquid in a matter of moments.

The black liquid then seeped into the ground, vanishing without a trace.

A corpse had vanished into thin air in just a few breaths!

Seeing this, Duan Xinyu’s face twisted into a smug, savage grin. "You’re not even in my league!"

Lin Hao shrugged, ignoring Duan Xinyu. He brought the pill to his mouth, breathed on it, and then began wiping it with the corner of his sleeve.

As he wiped, Lin Hao muttered to himself, "Such a fine pill, and you had to go and coat it with poison. What a terrible waste. Good thing I can just wipe it clean and still use it."

"Go wipe it in Hell!" Duan Xinyu sneered.

’Has Lin Hao gone mad now that death is at his door? How could the poison on that pill possibly be wiped off? Not even a Pill King would have such an ability.’

"There, all clean!" Lin Hao said, putting the pill away. He then looked up, beaming at Duan Xinyu. "This is a nice pill. Got any more?"

The corner of Duan Xinyu’s mouth twitched. A pill like that was priceless; he had gone to great lengths to acquire this single one. How could he possibly have more?

Wait!

’Shouldn’t the poison have taken effect by now?!’

But here Lin Hao was, standing before him completely unharmed, without the slightest sign of being poisoned.

It was a lethal poison that not even a peak Soul Gathering Realm expert could resist, a poison that would render even a Pill King helpless.

"You... you..." At this thought, Duan Xinyu’s eyes widened as he stared at Lin Hao, as if he were seeing a demon. His words caught in his throat.

Lin Hao smiled back at him, revealing a set of pearly white teeth.

A chill shot through Duan Xinyu, and he abruptly stumbled back.

Only after retreating did Duan Xinyu remember that a great Array was active within Your Highness’ Mansion. Lin Hao couldn’t possibly get close to him.

At this thought, Duan Xinyu’s arrogance returned. "Even if the poison couldn’t kill you, don’t even think about leaving here alive today!"

"Catch him, quickly!" Wenren Yuxin suddenly called out, reminding Lin Hao.

So much time had passed; reinforcements from the other families must be on their way. If they didn’t capture Duan Xinyu, none of them would be able to leave Your Highness’ Mansion.

"Hahaha, catch me? Come and try! I’m standing right here." Hearing Wenren Yuxin, Duan Xinyu burst out laughing.

Wenren Yuxin’s gaze darkened.

’Even I can’t break through this ethereal wall. How could Lin Hao possibly succeed?’ 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

But just then, Lin Hao calmly uttered three words: "As you wish."

In the next instant, Wenren Yuxin’s eyes widened.

She saw Lin Hao’s form appear to her right.

He was too fast.

"Isn’t Duan Xinyu over there?" Lin Xinran said mockingly, seeing Lin Hao’s movement.

Lin Hao was moving in the complete opposite direction of Duan Xinyu. If he could catch him like that, then pigs could fly.

However, Lin Hao immediately proved her spectacularly wrong.

Lin Hao simply reached into the empty air, and with a sharp tug, pulled a person out. A closer look revealed it was none other than Duan Xinyu.

Meanwhile, the Duan Xinyu across from them shuddered, then slowly faded until he disappeared completely.

Everyone now understood: the person in Lin Hao’s grasp was Duan Xinyu’s true body.

No one could have imagined that Duan Xinyu’s real body had been hidden there.

Especially Wenren Yuxin—Duan Xinyu had been right behind her, yet she hadn’t noticed him at all.

The realization horrified her.

"It’s the Array playing tricks. Not even a Soul Gathering Realm Martial Artist would have been able to find him." Seeing Wenren Yuxin’s expression, Lin Hao knew what she was thinking and offered an explanation.

His explanation reminded the others about the ethereal walls still present in the air.

But for Lin Hao, those walls might as well have not existed. It was utterly shocking.

"Good heavens, Brother Lin, are you even human? How is it that nothing stumps you?" Chen Qian sized Lin Hao up and down, as if genuinely trying to determine if he was human.

"The Heaven-Stepping Sect is, after all, the direct lineage of an Emperor Venerable. We dabble in many things, so I only know the basics," Lin Hao replied.

Duan Xinyu, still in Lin Hao’s grasp, felt the corner of his mouth twitch.

He never imagined Lin Hao could find where his true body was hidden, nor that he could break through the ethereal wall. That was the only reason he had been caught.

He was already feeling utterly humiliated, and now, hearing Lin Hao’s words, he wanted nothing more than to spit in his face.

’This Your Highness’ Mansion was built hundreds of years ago. The great Array was laid personally by an Array Master; it’s absolutely not just ’the basics’! Yet this guy talks about it so casually... What a fucking show-off!’

Of course, he would never say this out loud. He wouldn’t do anything to boost his enemy’s morale at the expense of his own.

"That’s right, the Arrays in Your Highness’ Mansion are mere child’s play. I’ll take you to see the Royal Palace when I have the chance." Despite being captured by Lin Hao, Duan Xinyu’s tone remained haughty.

He was reminding Lin Hao to release him at once—after all, he was the great Eighth Prince.

But Lin Hao’s next words made his heart skip a beat.

"Oh, I’ll go. But I don’t need a dead man to show me the way."

"You want to kill me?" Duan Xinyu raised an eyebrow, a smirk appearing on his face.

Lin Hao returned the smile and reached out his hand.

Fear consumed Duan Xinyu.

"Lin Hao, don’t!" Wenren Yuxin, realizing what he was about to do, quickly cried out to stop him.

Letting Duan Xinyu go would keep this a personal grudge between him and Lin Hao. But killing him would be tantamount to declaring war on the entire royal family.

Lin Hao’s hand paused.

"Lin Hao, the imperial royal family stands behind me! You wouldn’t dare—" Duan Xinyu’s arrogance flared up again.

However, before he could finish, Lin Hao crushed his throat.

The Eighth Prince of the Cangnan Empire was dead.

He died with his eyes wide open.

A Prince, crushed to death by Lin Hao as easily as an ant. Wenren Yuxin, Chen Qian, and Lin Xinran were all completely stunned.

PS: It’s the start of the month, so I’m asking for monthly tickets! On top of the two guaranteed Chapters, I’ll release one extra Chapter tomorrow for every five monthly tickets we get!